Registering device



1942- D. G. BLATTNER 98, 73

REGISTERING DEVICES Filed Jan. 1, 1942 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR 48 0.G.B LA7'7'NER A 7' TORNEV Patented Oct. 13, 1942 REGISTERING DEVICEDavid G. Blattner, Mountain Lakes, N. J., assiznor to'Bel'l TelephoneLaboratories, Incorporated, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New YorkApplication January 1, 1942, Serial No. 425,279

9 Claims.

This invention relates to registering devices and particularly toimprovements in such devices as are electrically controlled and employedin telephone systems.

Objects of this invention are to provide simplified inexpensiveregisters for this purposev which are of light construction, improvedoperating characteristics and prolonged service endurance.

Heretofore registers for this purpose were provided with ratchetmechanisms controlled by a magnet through. an armature to advance the.

counting wheels one step for each operation of the magnet. The ratchetmechanism consisted of an operating pawl which engaged the ratchet wheelonce for each operation of the magnet to rotate it one step and aholding pawl for engaging the ratchet wheel to hold it in the advancedposition. The operating pawl and holding pawl may in some instances becombined in a single mem-- cerned and a feature thereof is a ratchet,

mechanism comprising a rigid member attached to the armature, a flexibledriving pawl secured at one end to said member and to the armature, aflexible stop pawl secured at one end to said member and to thearmature, with projections on said member for pivotally holding saidpawls near their free ends to permit the pawls to iiex on both sides ofsaid pivotal projections when coming in contact with the teeth of theratchet wheel. An advantage of this arrangement is that the strains setup in the pawls during their functioning are distributedover'considerable portions of their lengths thereby preventing thestresses from exceeding the elastic limit of the material and thusprolonging the life of said pawls. Furthermore, this arrangement enablesthe pawl mechanism to be made of comparatively light construction topermit high operating speed without impairing other operatingcharacteristics nor the service endurance of the register.

It is another feature of the invention to provide a stop arrangement forthe forward and backpin located in a slot in the armature. The forwardand backward motion of the armature is stopped when the edges of theslot, which is somewhat wider than the pin, strike the pin. 5 The pin ismounted in apertures in the frame members of the register mounting, andthese apertures are also somewhat larger than the pin. By thisarrangement each time the armature is released or operated, the pin willbe slightly rotated and thereby cause wear of the pin to be equallydistributed around its periphery and thus the accurate functioning ofthe register is not impaired for a long period of time.

The invention has been illustrated in the accompanying drawings in whichFig. 1 shows the top view of a mounting plate for a plurality ofregister units. Fig. 2 shows a side view partly in section of a completeregister unit and mounting. Fig. 3 is a bottom view of the system shownin Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is similar to Fig. 2 except that it relates mainly tothe cyclometer portion. Fig. 5 is a top view of the pawl and armatureassembly in accordance with the applicant's invention; and Fig. 6 is aside view of this pawl and armature assembly.

A plurality of registers in accordance with the applicant's inventionmay be mounted on a common mounting angle plate I in a row so thatv thenumerals on succeeding registers may be observed from a common point. Itwill be clear from Fig. 2 that the mounting plate I serves as a commonreturn path for the magnetic flux from all the magnets of th registersmounted thereon. The operating magnet 2 for each register is mounted onthe vertical portion 3 of plate I by means of an extension on the coreand the nut as shown at 4 and on the horizontal portion 5 of the plate Iby means of a bracket 6 serving as a spoolhead and bent at an angle andsecured to the portion 40 5 by means of a screw 1. The remaining partsof each register are mounted on the portion 5 by means of a U-shapedmounting frame I and a screw H passing through a slot such as l2 in theportion to align these parts of the registering mechanism in properrelation to the operating magnet. That is, the armature [4 must be inproper relation to the core of the magnet 2 and for this purpose theframe III is provided with lugs such as It and I! that xtend into theslot I2. These parts are of such design that when lug l'l engages theleft-hand side of the slot ll! and lug I6 engages the right-hand side ofslot I2, the register mechanism is accurately located as-far as armaturealignment is concerned. With ward strokes of the armature comprising around to this orientation the frame l0 with lugs 16 and I1 may beshifted forward or backward along the slot l2 to adjust the distancebetween the armature and the core of magnet 2 whereupon the frame I8 maybe secured permanently to the portion 5 by screw The register mechanismmounted in frame |8 consists of the usual cyclometer wheels 28preferably moulded from an insulation material,

mounted on a shaft 2| through side members 22 and 23 of frame l8 and theintermediate pinions 24 moulded of the same material similarly mountedon a shaft 25. Advantages of using molded cyclometer wheels of someplastic material rather than metal are a reduction in wear and greateroperating speeds. Associated or molded with the units wheel 21 is aratchet wheel 28 for advancing of the difierent 'cyclometer wheels insteps. I cured to the bottom portion of frame l8 engages a tooth in theratchet wheel 28 to prevent it from rotating in a backward direction.Between the side members 22 and 23 of frame I8 is also mounted theoperating mechanism for the ratchet wheel 28 consisting of the armaturel4 of magnetic material pivoted on shaft 38 and the pawl mechanism shownmost clearly in Fig. 6. Armature I4 is U-shaped and consists thereforeof the bottom portion 34, side portion 35 and side portion 38 and isheld in non-operated position by a spring 38 connected at one end to thehook 38 on the bottom portion 34 of the armature l4 and at the other endto a hook 48 extending from a cross member 42 between the side members22 and 23 of the frame l8.

To adjust or limit the forward and-backward strokes of the armature whenit is attracted or released by the magnet, the side portions 35 and.

38 are provided with apertures or slots 43 and 44 in which a 'round pin48 is located. This pin is mounted in circular holes 41 and 48 in theside members Y22 and 23 but the diameter of these holes is greater thanthe diameter of the'pin 48 so that whereas under its own influence thepin 48 would tend to rest in the lower side of the holes 41 and 48, thearmature in the released position causes said pin to move to the left,looking at Fig. 2, to engage the left-hand side of these holes. 'Thatis, when the pin is moved from the lower position to this left-handposition, it will be given a rotary motion around its own axis.Similarly when the armature is attracted by the magnet, the pin 48-willbe released to return to the lower portion of the holes 41 and 48 andthen when the left-hand side of the slots 43 and 44 touch the pin 48, itwill be moved in the holes 41 and 48 and be given a rotary motion aroundits axis, until finally it is pressed against the right-hand side of theholes. These rotary movements of the pin 48 cause the wear and tear ofthe pin when pounded by the sides of the slots 44 and 45 the armatureand to prevent overthrow of the ratchet wheel a stop pawl 5| is alsoassociated with the armature. This pawl 5|, together with holding pawl88 and the driving pawl 58, insure that the ratchet wheel 28 willadvance one position per operation of the magnet and one position only.When the armature is attracted by the magnet 2, the pawl 5| leaves theinter-tooth A spring-holding pawl 88 seto be distributed around thecircumference of the pin and not at one point as would happen if the pinwere held stationary. The wear on the pin is also materally reduced bymaking it of hard rubber or other similar material rather than metal. Bythis arrangement, therefore, the backward and forward strokes of thearmature will remain constant. In fact the. armature may be operated andreleased several million times without requiring attention with regardto adJustments of the strokes due to the wear of the pin 48, the holes41 and 48 or sides of slots 43 and 44.

To rotate the ratchet wheel 28 one step each time the armature I4 isreleased after having been operated. an operating pawl 58 is associatedwith space of ratchet wheel 28 but the holding pawl 38 tends to retainthe ratchet wheel in its normal position while the driving pawl moves toengage the next succeeding tooth. Fig. 4 shows the operative positionsof the pawls 58 and 5| when the armature is attracted by the magnet 2.The operating pawl 58 is shown engaging a tooth on the left-hand sideposition while the holding pawl 38' prevents it from moving in thebackward direction and pawl 5| is shown completely withdrawn. When thearmature is released the pawl 58 advances the ratchet wheel one step andall these pawls 58, 5|, and 38 then hold the wheel in the advancedposition. However, the holding pawl 38 serves one additional function inthat while the free end resting behind a tooth of the ratchet wheeleffectively prevents backward rotation and the stoppawl 5| prevents freeforward rotation of the ratchet wheel, it would still be possible forthe latter to assume an intermediate position wherein the numerals onthe cyclometer units wheel as viewed from. in front would not be inalignment with the numerals on the other cyclometer wheels. To preventthis the holding pawl 38 is so shaped that it rests against the toothbehind the one engaging the end of said pawl. The applicant accomplishesthese operations in a register of considerably reduced size and lightlyconstructed parts, such as an armature and pawl mechanism includingpawls of light flexible springs, without impairing the efllciency andreliability of operation of the register and with the added advantagethat the reduced size of the registers permits them to be mounted closertogether in more confined spaces. Ordinarily such light construction ofthe armature and pawl .mechanism with the pawls in the form of lightflexible sp'rings would soon cause the mechanism to get out ofadjustment or the spring pawls would soon break due to the repeatedstrains received by them in operation of the ratchet wheel. However, theapplicant has overcome heavier but still quite flexible holding pawl 5|are mounted with a U-shaped member 88 to the armature l4. The operatingpawl 58 is bent at practically a right-angle at 6| and extends along thebottom portion of the U-shaped member 88 from the point 8| to a point82. Between the point 82 and a point 83, this pawl is provided with anupward angular extension 84 that widens out from the point 83 to a point85 where it is of uniform width from this point to its end at 88.Similarly the stop pawl 5| is bent at practically right-angles at point88 and extends along the bottom of the U-shaped member 88 and betweenpoints 82 and 83 is provided with an angular upward extension 88 of thesame shape as the corresponding section 84 of pawl 58. The side membersof the U-shaped member 88 also increase in width to take the same shapesas the extensions 84 and 88 between the points 82 and 88. The portionsof the operating pawl 58 and the holding pawl 5| between points 88 and83 lie snugly one on top of the other on the bottom portion of theU-shaped member 60. At point 'I2 one of the side members of the Ushapedmember 60 is formed to close in on the other side member as shown inFig. and between one of these side members and the extensions 64 and 68on the one hand and the other side member on the other hand, an angularprojection I5 on the side portion 35 of armature I4 is placed and all ofthese parts are riveted together by means of bolts or rivets I6.

It should now be observed that the pawl 50 is slightly enlarged in widthat the point If! to fit snugly between the side members of member 60. Atthis point these side members are provided with lugs I8 and I9 which arebent over the pawl 50. However, these lugs are so shaped as to looselyclamp the pawl 50 against the bottom surface of the member 60 only atthe point I1. This insures that the pawl member 50 as a whole will movewith the channel member 60 under the influence of the armature I4 butthat in flexing the pawl 50 as it engages one ratchet tooth afteranother the whole portion between the free end and the point 63 is freeto flex with a pivotal point located at the point 11 where lugs I8 andI9 are in contact with pawl 50. The advantage of this is that in flexingpawl 50 as it moves to engage a ratchet wheel, the strains and thereforethe fibre stresses are reduced to such an extent that no failures of thepawl 50 occur in millions of operations of the register whereas inrigidly clamping that portion of pawl 50 in Fig. 6 to the right of thelugs I8 and I9 failures occurred consistently in less than 100,000operations. The same general scheme is used in holding the stop pawlmember 5| to the channel member 60 and with the same result as describedin connection with pawl 59. In this case, however, the lugs of themember 60 are BI and 82 and of course clamp both pawl 50 and pawl 5|.

What is claimed is:

1. In a step-by-step mechanism, a magnet, an armature therefor, aratchet wheel, a pawl mechanism comprising a rigid member secured tosaid armature, a flexible driving pawl secured at one end to said memberand to the armature, a flexible stop pawl securedat one end to saidmember and to the armature, projections on said member for pivotallyholding said pawls near their free ends to permit said pawls to flex onboth sides of said pivotal projections to distribute the strain due toflexing of the pawls over a large portion of their lengths.

2. In a step-by-step mechanism, a magnet, an

armature therefor, a ratchet wheel, a pawl mechanism comprising a rigidmember secured to said armature, a flexible driving pawl secured at oneend to said member and to the armature, a flexible stop pawl secured atone end to said member and to the armature, and means on said rigidmember for confining the movement of said pawls in relation to saidrigid member to very close limits, but permitting the flexing of saidpawls over a Zarge portion of their lengths to absorb the shock ofimpact with teeth on said ratchet wheel when the armature is released toadvance the ratchet wheel.

3. In a step-by-step mechanism, a magnet, an armature therefor, aratchet wheel, a pawl mechanism comprising a rigid member secured tosaid armature, a flexible driving pawl secured at one end to said memberand to the armature, a flexible stop pawl secured at one end to saidmember and to the armature, and means on said rigid member forpermitting the absorption by the entire free flexible portions of saidpawls of the shock of impact of said pawls against teeth in said ratchetwheel when the magnet is released.

4. In a step-by-step mechanism, a magnet, an armature therefor, aratchet wheel, a pawl mechanism comprising a rigid member attached tosaid armature, a flexible driving pawl secured at one end to said rigidmember, a flexible stop pawl secured at one end to said rigid member,projectionsfrom said rigid member arranged to pivotally hold said pawlsnear their free ends against said rigid member when moved by saidarmature and rigid member to rotate and hold said ratchet wheel in anadvanced position, so that said pawls may flex on both sides of theirpivotal points when coming in contact with teeth in said ratchet wheelto distribute the strain due to said flexing of the pawls over largeportions thereof.

5. In a step-by-step mechanism, a magnet, an armature therefor, aratchet wheel, a pawl mechanism comprising a U-shaped rigid memberattached to said armature, a thin flexible driving pawl arranged to lieflat in the bottom of said U-shaped member and having one end secured tosaid member and having its other free end bent at right angles upwardlyout of said U-shaped member, a flexible stop pawl arranged to lie fiaton top of the driving pawl to cover a portion thereof and having one endsecured 'to the U- shaped member and having its other free end bent atright angles upwardly out of said U- shaped member, projections on theside members of said U-shaped member bent inwardly to engage the upwardsurface of the flexible driving pawl near the bent-up portion thereof tohold said driving pawl at one pivotal point in said U-shaped member,projections of the side members of said U-shaped member bent inwardly toengage the upper surface of the stop pawl near the bent-up portionthereof to hold said pawl at one pivotal point in said U-shaped memberwhen the armature is actuated to cause said bent-up portions of saidpawls to engage the teeth in said ratchet wheel to rotate it one step,said pawls being thereby free to flex around said pivotal points whenengaging the teeth to distribute the strain due to said flexing over alarge area of the two pawls on both sides of the pivotal points.

6. In a step-by-step mechanism, a magnet, an

' armature therefor, a ratchet wheel, a pawl mechanism comprising arigid member, a driving pawl and a stop pawl secured together on saidarmature at one point and held loosely at another point by said rigidmember, said rigid member arranged to cooperate with said pawls to guidethem when the armature is actuated to engage the teeth in said ratchetwheel to advance it one step and to pivot said pawls to flex on bothsides of the points where said pawls are held loosely by said rigidmember to distribute the strain due to the shock of the impact of saidpawls against the teeth of said ratchet wheel over a large area of saidpawls.

7. In a step-by-step mechanism, a frame, a magnet, an armature therefor,a ratchet wheel, a pawl mechanism comprising a driving pawl and a stoppawl secured to said armature for actuating said ratchet wheel to takeone step and a round stop member mounted in apertures in said frame of alarger diameter than the stop member, said stop member being located inrelation to the armature to limit the forward and backward strokes ofthe armature.

4 spasms 8. In a step-by-step mechanism, a frame, a magnet, an armaturetherefor, a ratchetwheel, a pawl mechanism comprisinz a drivinl pawl anda stop pawl secured to said armature for actuatin: said ratchet wheel totake one step and a round hard rubber pin mounted in apertures in saidframe of a larger diameter than the stop member, said stop member beinglocated in relation to the armature and the apertures to limit theforward and backward strokes of the armsture.

9. In a step-by-step mechanism, a frame. a

magnet, an armature therefor, a ratchet wheel, a pawl mechanismcontrolled-by said armature to advance said ratchet wheel one step onthe back stroke of the armature, a single stop member associated withsaid armature to limit the forward and backward strokes of the armatureand mounting means in said'frame for said stop member to cause therotation of said stop mem her when the armature strikes it on theforward 10 and the backward strokes.

mvm a. BLA'I'I'NER.

